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THE 



LIFE OF ESTHER, 



BY REV. DANIEL SMITH, 

Of the N. Y. Annual Conference. 



O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge 
of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways 
past finding out !— Romans xi, 33. 



REVISED BY THE EDITORS, 



'--' ' -l 



NEW-YORK; 

PUBLISHED BY T. MASON AND G, LANE, 

or the Sunday School Union of the Methodist Episcopal Ghurdl, 
at the Conference Office, 200 Mulberry-street. 

J. CoUord, Printer. 
1840. 






" Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 
1840, by T. Mason and G. Lane, in the Clerk's Office 
of the District Court of the Southern District of New- 
York." 









THE 

LIFE OF E S THE R. 



^ CHAPTER I. 

The Jews in exile — Scattered through the pro- 
tinces of the Persian empire— Assassination of 
Xerxes and Darius — Ahasuerus ascends the throne 
—A great festival — Temperance. 

The last chapter of the second 
book of Kings presents us with a 
mournful picture. We there behold 
God's once favoured people relapsed 
into idolatry. They have forgotten 
the God of their fathers, forsaken his 
j worship, and despised his prophets, 
and the day of their calamity has 
come. The noise of an advancing 
hoSt is heard. The trampling of 
horses, the rumbling of chariots, the 
shouts of multitudes of archers and 
1 spearmen echo along the hills of 



6 LIFE OF ESTHER. 

Judea. Nebuchadnezzar, the scourge 
of nations, comes at the head of his 
hosts, and passes through the land 
like a desolating tornado. The cities j 
of Judea are laid waste, Jerusalem 
itself is taken, its towers are dis- 
mantled, its walls thrown down, and 
its magnificent temple is burned with 
fire. 

Next we behold a long train, com- 
posed of nobles, ladies, priests, arti- 
sans, officers, fathers and sons, mo- 
thers and daughters, slowly winding 
along the roads and defiles leading 
from the city of their birth. Sorrow 
is depicted upon every countenance ; 
the deep drawn sighs, the falling 
tears, the long lingering glances 
which they cast toward their own 
pleasant, but now desolate homes, 
evince the deep-toned anguish of that 
mournful company. These captive 
Israelites are on their way to exile; 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 



they are led away by the victors to- 
ward Babylon. 

Years have passed away; they have 
reached the end of their journey, and 
have been distributed through dif- 
ferent provinces of the great Baby- 
lonian empire. Nebuchadnezzar is 
dead, and successive monarchs have 
filled the throne, until Babylon itself 
has yielded to the arms of the Medes, 
and Cyrus the conqueror reigns in 
place of the descendants of Ne- 
buchadnezzar. 

Under this wise and equitable 
prince an edict is issued, permitting 
the Jews to return and rebuild their 
temple, and again sit under their own 
vine and fig tree in the land of their 
fathers. Numbers avail themselves 
of the privilege thus granted, and re- 
turn to the sepulchres of their fathers 
and the undisturbed worship of their 
fathers' God. But many others re- 



8 LIFE OF ESTHER. 

main. They have become settledr 
and reconciled to their exile; their 
possessions and associations, their 
habits and prospects, lead them to 
prefer their present situation to the 
toils, dangers, and privations of a re- 
turn to Judea. 

Time rolls on; the Jews greatly 
multiply in the land of their exile. 
As merchants, artisans, or husband- 
men, they are found in almost every 
province of the empire. In the mean 
time Cyrus dies, and is succeeded in 
the empire by successive monarchs, 
until, in the year before Christ 473, 
when Ahasuerus (called by profane 
historians, Artaxerxes Longimanus) 
ascends the throne. "With his reign 
the detail of our history properly com- 
mences. A brief account of his intro- 
duction to the throne may therefore, 
with propriety, be given here. 

Ahasuerus was the son of Xerxes, 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 9 

one of the most cruel of tyrants and 
I execrable of men. Xerxes had made 
war upon Greece, and led into that 
small country one of the greatest 
armies that ever took the field. But 
his army had been vanquished, his 
' fleet nearly annihilated, and he had 
returned in deep disgrace. Dispirited 
i by his ill success, he had given up 
all thoughts of war and conquest, and 
[ abandoned himself entirely to luxury 
I and ease. His pleasures were now 
the chief objects of his thoughts, and 
his neglect of business and dissolute 
conduct soon drew upon him the con- 
tempt of his subjects. Among his 
chief favourites was Artabanus, the 
i captain of his guards. This ambitious 
( man was not slow to discover the 
• declining credit of his master, nor 
wanting in disposition to employ this 
' favourable time for an attempt to 
raise himself to the throne. Entering 



10 LIFE OF ESTHER. 

into a conspiracy with Mithridatus, 
the high chamberlain of the palace, 
he, by his means, gained access to 
the king's bedchamber and murdered 
him in his sleep. He then went to 
Ahasuerus, the third son of the 
slaughtered monarch, and informed 
him of his father's death, charging it 
upon Darius, his eldest brother, and j 
assigning impatience to ascend the 
throne as the cause of the execrable 
deed. 

Deceived by the traitor, and alarm- 
ed for his own safety, Ahasuerus 
proceeded to the apartments of his 
brother, where, with the assistance 
of Artabanus and his guards, he slew 
the innocent and unsuspecting Darius. 
Artabanus now lent his aid to place 
Ahasuerus upon the throne, intend- 
ing, as soon as his plot was matured, 
to add him to the number of his vic- 
tims, and thus secure undisputed 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 11 

sovereignty. But Ahasuerus dis- 
I covered his treachery, and cut him 
^ off ere he was aware that his designs 
' were known. 

There were, howe^^er, still remain- 
1 ing two obstacles to his peaceable pos- 
session of the throne : the faction 
organized against him by Artabanus 
' before his death, and the claims of 
. his brother Hystaspes, governor of 
Bactriana. He began with the for- 
mer, with whom he fought a bloody 
battle, in which a great number of 
Persian nobles lost their hves, and in 
which he was entirely successful. He 
then sent an army into Bactriana 
against his brother, where a battle 
was fought in which neither party 
was successful. A second- army, 
however, proved victorious, entirely 
ruining his brother's cause, and leav- 
ing Ahasuerus in undisputed posses- 
sion of the government. 



12 LIFE OF ESTHER. 

To commemorate these successes 
and his acquisition of the whole Per- 
sian empire, Ahasuerus appointed a 
great festival to be held in the royal 
city of Shushan, and to continue for 
the term of one hundred and eighty 
days. The splendour of this gorgeous 
entertainment corresponded to the 
wealth and magnificence of the em- 
pire. It was held in " the court of 
the garden of the king's palace." 
Here the pavilions were covered with 
" white, green, and blue hangings, 
fastened with cords of fine linen and 
purple to silver rings and pillars 
of marble." The court was paved 
with '^blue, white, and black mar- 
ble," and the guests reclined on 
couches, whose coverings were orna- 
mented with gold and silver embroid- 
ery. A variety of delicate meats and 
vegetables was served up in the 
.most costly plate, and the guests 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 13 

drank wine from cups made of gold 
and silver. At this great festival 
were seen the governors of provinces 
with their retinue, princes and nobles, 
judges and commanders with their 
insignia and robes of office. To these 
great men of his empire the king 
" showed the riches of his glorious 
kingdom and the honour of his excel- 
lent majesty." Here was, in short, 
almost every thing that could strike 
and dazzle the senses. The eye be- 
held a most imposing .array of wealth 
and splendour, the ear listened to the 
soft cadences of Persian music, and 
the palate was feasted, even to sur- 
feiting, on the choicest delicacies. 
' Yet after all how deceptive was this 
; false glitter ! How many sad and 
weary hearts were there concealed 
under forced smiles ! " Only conceive 
what a weariness it must have been 
to the king and his courtiers to keep 



14 LIFE OF ESTHER- 

this feast so many days. What sacri- 
fices of real comfort does the world 
exact from its votaries ! And how 
much real wretchedness and desola- 
tion of heart may be found lurking in 
the bosoms of those ' who are gor- 
geously apparelled and live delicately 
in kings' courts.' " 

One circumstance in connection 
with this festival is worthy of remark 
and commendation. There was no 
compulsion, nor even urging, to im- 
moderate drinking. '' The drinking j 
was according to the law; none did 
compel : for so the king had appointed 
to all the officers of his house, that 
every man should do according to his 
pleasure." Among the Greeks each 
guest was obliged to drink as his turn 
came round, or leave the company. 
To this vile custom there has been 
quite too near an approach even in 
our own Christian land. But, thanks 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 15- 

to Providence, through the great 
temperance reformation the practice of 
tempting men to ruin by urging them 
to drink is scouted from all reputable 
society. 

I " Drink not [the poison] which thou canst not tame 
When once it is within thee, but before 
May'st rule it as thou list ; and pour the shaiiie, 
Which it would pour on thee, upon the floor. 
It is most just to throw that on the ground 
Which would throw me there if I keep the round. 
***** All kinds of ill 
Did with the liquor slide into his veins. 
The drunkard forfeits man ; and doth divest 
All worldly right save what he hath by beast ^ 



CHAPTER IT. 

Ahasuerus makes a second festival, and invites 
the people of Shushan at large — The queen makes 
i another for the ladies of ShusTian — Inebriation of 
the king — Sends for Queen Vashti — A test of cha- 
racter — ^Vashti refuses to come — ^A council called — 
The queen divorced — Regrets of the king. 

At the expiration of the feast made 
for the nobles and officers of the em- 
pire, Ahasuerus made an entertain- 



16 LIFE OF ESTHER. 

ment of seven days' continuance for 
the people of Shnshan at large. The 
queen, whose name was Vashti, like- 
wise made a feast for the ladies of 
the royal city. As the women of the ^; ! 
East never mingle with the men in 
public, Vashti made this feast for the 
Persian ladies by themselves; and 
while the men were in the court of 
the garden, the ladies were in the 
royal palace. The seventh day, the 
day on which this superb festival was 
to terminate, at length arrived. But 
*'it was scarcely to be expected that 
a feast at which such an immense 
multitude had been brought together, 
and which had been prolonged to 
such a period, could end without, 
some saddening occurrence. It was 
not indeed broken up by a whirlwind, 
like that of Job's children, nor by a 
fearful handwriting upon the wall of ; 
the festive room, like that of Belshaz- 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 17 

zar, but it ended with disgrace tb the 
rojal family, and the guests were 
dismissed with something else to talk 
of than the magnificence of the enter- 
tainer and the honour of his excellent 
majesty." 

Overjoyed, perhaps, at the prospect 
of being once more left to enjoy the 
luxury of a little quiet and retirement, 
on the last day of the feast Ahasue- 
rus indulged too freely in drinking, 
and his heart became "merry with 
wine." "While in this merry mood, 
the thought suddenly struck him, that 
as he had been exhibiting '' the hon- 
our of his royal majesty," he would 
bring in the queen, and exhibit the 
heauty of her royal majesty. No 
sooner had the whim taken him, 
than he resolved to follow it. With- 
out consulting the customs of the 
Persian court, or the rules of deco- 
rum, or even the delicacies of female 

2 



18 LIFE OF ESTHER, 

modesty, he gave orders to his seven 
principal chamberlains to go and 
bring in the queen. 

This order furnished a decisive 
though painful test of the character 
of Vashti. Was she vain? Here 
was a fine opportunity of displaying 
her beauty, and that, too, without re- 
proach, for she could shield herself 
Xinder the command of her royal hus- 
band. How gladly would many of 
those vain females who, by their dress 
and manners, show that they with 
difficulty refrain from overstepping 
the bounds of modesty, how gladly 
would they have availed themselves 
of such a pretext for exhibiting them- 
selves. But was Vashti a woman of 
sense and modesty ? If so, how could 
she consent to be led in for the pur- 
pose of exposing her beauty " to the 
impudent gaze of half inebriated no- 
bles, or of a rude populaca?" 



LIFE OF ESTHER. IQ 

The sequel shows that this brutal 
order, originating in the fumes of 
wine, had to encounter a woman 
whose modesty was only equalled by 
her courage. She well knew^ the abso- 
lutism of a Persian monarch, and the 
risk she ran by incurring his displea- 
sure; but she estimated her virtue 
and honour as every female should 
do — above all price, and nobly re- 
fused to obey the king's unreason- 
able mandate. '' Hail, noble woman ! 
be thou a pattern to all thy sex on 
every similar occasion. Surely, every 
thing considered, we have few wo- 
men like Vashti, for some of the 
highest in the land will dress, and 
deck themselves with the utmost 
splendour, even to the selvage of 
their fortunes, to exhibit themselves 
at balls, plays, galas, operas, and pub- 
lic assemblies of all kinds, that they 
may be seen and admired of men." 



20 LIFE OF ESTHER* 

While the king", still flushed with 
wine, was eagerly waiting for the ap- 
pearance of his beautiful queen, the 
chamberlains returned with the in- 
telligence that she refused to come. 
The haughty spirit of Ahasuerus took 
fire at this. He imagined himself 
insulted before his courtiers and sub- 
jects, 'therefore was the king very 
wroth, and his anger burned in him." 

Without waiting till the fumes of 
the wine were dissipated, or his pas- 
sion had time to subside, the king im- 
mediately called a council to determine 
on the penalty to be inflicted upon the 
queen. Among his seven privy coun- 
sellors there was one named Memu- 
can, who put himself forward as ora- 
tor on the present occasion : " Vashti 
the queen hath not done wrong to 
the king only," said he, " but also to 
all the princes, and to all the peo- 
ple that are in all the provinces of the 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 21 

king Ahasuerus. For this deed of 
the queen shall come abroad unto all 
women, so that they shall despise 
their husbands in their eyes when it 
shall be reported, The king Ahasue- 
rus commanded Vasti the queen to 
be brought in before him, but she 
came not. Likewise shall the ladies 
of Persia and Media say this day 
unto all the king's princes, which 
have heard of the deed of the queen. 
Thus shall there arise too much con- 
tempt and wrath. If it please the 
king, let there go a royal command- 
ment from him, and let it be written 
among the laws of the Persians and 
the Medes, that it be not altered, 
That Vashti come no more before 
King Ahasuerus; and let the king 
give her royal estate unto another 
that is better than she. And when 
the king's decree, which he shall 
make, shall be published throughout 



22 LIFE OF ESTHER. 

all his empire, (for it is great,) all 
the wives shall give to their hus- 
bands honour, both to great and 
small.'' 

" All this parade of enactment, de- 
claring ' that every man should bear 
rule in his own house,' a truth taught 
both by God's law and common sense 
from the foundation of the world, was 
only made to deprive honest Vashti 
of her crown." 

The intoxication of wine and the 
intoxication of passion at length sub- 
sided, and left the king at leisure 
to reflect on his proceedings. The 
whole matter underwent the review 
and decision of calm reason, and 
how different was the verdict which 
reason brought in, from that given 
by wine and passion ! Ahasuerus 
saw that he had divorced his excel- 
lent queen for that which was her 
highest honour. With deep regret 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 23 

he parted with his beautiful and high- 
miaded Vashti, whom by an absurd 
and unalterable law he must see no 
more. 



CHAPTER IIL 

A device for the cure of the king's melancholy — 
The fairest damsels of the empire are to be brought 
to Shushan, that out of them the king may select 
one to fill the place of Vashti — Hadassah, the Jew- 
ish orphan — ^Adopted by Mordecai — Character of 
Mordecai — Hadassah's beauty — Her character — 
She is selected among the number to be presented 
to the king — Is presented, and made queen of the 
empire — Her nation* and relationship to Mordecai 
are kept secret. 

The eyes of courtiers are keen, 
and always on the alert. The attend- 
ants of Ahasuerus soon perceived 
his melancholy, and were at no loss 
to account for it. To divert his at- 
tention from his banished queen, they 
proposed that the most beautiful dam- 
sels in his dominions should be col- 



24 LIFE OF ESTHER. 

lected, that out of the most agreeable 
of them he might select one to take 
the place of Vashti. The king ap- 
proved of the proposal, and Hegai, 
his principal chamberlain, was ap- 
pointed to take charge of them. Ac- 
cording to the customs of the East, 
they were to be shut up twelve 
months, during which they made 
frequent use of the bath, and of 
odoriferous drugs, that their natural 
beauty might be heightened by art. 

We now approach a point in which 
our history begins to unfold before 
us the wonderful designs of Divine 
Providence. Without for a moment 
countenancing the monstrous idea 
that God was in any way the author 
of the revelry in which the king^s 
reason was drowned in wine, or of 
the injustice which deprived Vashti 
of her crown, we may see how he 
overruled even these events for 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 25 

the promotion of his own wise de- 
signs. 

\ Among the exiled Jews at Shu- 
shan was one named Abihail. This 
man had a daughter, to whom he had 
given the name of Hadassah. As 
childhood generally furnishes an in- 
dex to after life, we shall not trans- 
gress the bounds of probability by 

^ supposing that those amiable and at- 
tractive traits of character for which 
Hadassah became so distinguished in 
womanhood had begun to develop 
themselves at an early period of her 
life. Like an opening bud, whose 
beauties are still more than half con- 
cealed, this child of promise would 
not fail to awaken lively anticipations 
in the minds of her fond parents. 
But alas! death entered the habita- 
tion of Abihail, and both the parents 
were summoned to the world of spi- 
rits. Hadassah was now an orphan. 



26 LIFE OF ESTHER. 

An ORPHAN ! And is there a single 
ohord of sympathy which is not 
touched by that name. Home ! father ! 
mother ! these are the names that wake 
responsive echoes in the soul : these 
are the names around which cluster 
untold and unexplained endearments. 
But rvhere is the home of an orphan ? 
What feelings do the names oi father 
and mother awaken in an orphan's 
breast ? Judge, ye who have shared 
an orphan's lot, and lift up your hearts 
in thanksgiving to God, ye who are 
still privileged to say, My father and 
my mother ! 

But " when my father and mother 
forsake me, then the Lord will take 
me up," is the consoling language 
which inspiration puts into the mouths 
of those whom death has made pa- 
rentless. And most fully was this 
promise fulfilled to the orphan Ha- 
dassah. She had a cousin residing 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 27 

at Shushan, whose name was Mor- 
decai. Though, Kke herself, an exile, 
he possessed every trait of a manly 
and noble character: wisdom, cour- 
age, prudence, decision, and energy. 
He was moreover pious and benevo- 
lent. In the family of this man the 
defenceless Hadassah found an asy- 
lum. Mordecai not only took her 
under his protection, but adopted her 
and brought her up as his own daugh- 
ter. Under the fostering care of her 
excellent cousin, Hadassah ^4ncreased 
in wisdom and stature," exhibiting 
those qualities, both of body and 
mind, which give promise of future 
eminence. She was surpassingly 
beautiful in form and countenance. 
Her understanding was sound, her 
perceptions active and keen, her 
manners modest and discreet, and 
her disposition amiable and content- 
ed. She had but just arrived at the 



28 LIFE OF ESTHER. 

years of v^omanhood, when, as al- 
ready related, the divorce of Queen 
Vashti took place, and the order was 
issued for gathering the fair damsels 
from the different provinces. Among 
the young ladies selected on this oc- 
casion Hadassah was one, whether 
with or without her own and her 
guardian's consent, we are not in- 
formed. Carrying with her into the 
king's palace the modesty, sweetness 
of temper, and simplicity of manners 
which she had cultivated in the house 
of Mordecai, Hadassah soon gained 
the good-will of Hegai, the person to 
whose care she, with the other dam- 
sels, was committed. '^ The maiden 
pleased him, and she obtained kind- 
ness of him, and he gave her seven 
maidens which were meet to be given 
her out of the king's house, and he 
preferred her and her maidens unto 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 29 

the best place of the house of the 



women." 



When it came to the turn of any of 

jthe young women to be introduced to 

J the king, whatever articles of dress, 

- of whatever quality or colour, pleased 

■:them best, were to be given them. 

Hadassah's turn^t length came to be 

^ presented, but ^' she required nothing," 

leaving it entirely to her friend Hegai 

to determine what he considered most 

graceful and becoming. She was 

accordingly introduced to Ahasuerus. 

The monarch was struck with the 

beauty of her person, and soon learn- 

j ed that, great as were her personal 

charms, they were surpassed by those 

of her mind. We need not therefore 

be surprised to learn, that " the king 

loved her above all the women, and 

that she obtained grace and favour in 

his sight, more than all the virgins, 

I so that he set the royal crown upon 



30 LIFE OF ESTHER. 

her head, and made her queen instead 
of Vashti." Her name was changed 
to that of Esther. 

During the whole twelve months 
which Esther had passed under the 
care of Hegai, Mordecai had shown 
his affectionate solicitude for her wel- 
fare, by walking every day in the 
court of the women's house to inquire 
after her health and prosperity. And 
now that she had been advanced to 
power, wealth, and honour, she did 
not, like many vain and upstart per- 
sons, become elated with prosperity 
and forget her former benefactor. 
She had too much good sense to 
become vain and arrogant, and too 
much piety to become ungrateful. 
On the contrary, though queen of the 
empire, she still followed Mordecai's 
advice, and obeyed his instructions 
as implicitly as when she was de- 
pendant upon him even for her daily 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 31 

bread. Happy indeed are those young 
persons who have sense enough to 
know their own weakness, and self- 
control enough to govern themselves 
by the counsels of age and experience. 
One of the injunctions of Mordecai 
was, that she should not disclose her 
national origin, or her relationship to 
him, an injunction which she scrupu- 
lously obeyed. This simple incident 
sets off the characters of these two 
persons to greater advantage than a 
volume of encomiums. Here was a 
man possessing a capacity for the 
most exalted stations, a fact not un- 
known to himself His talents, a 
laudable ambition to be useful, espe- 
cially to his countrymen the Jews, a 
desire to be in a situation where he 
Could serve the monarch who had 
raised his beloved Hadassah to the 
throne, with every prospect of suc- 
cess, should he sue for royal favour, 



32 LIFE OF ESTHER. 

all combined to urge him forward in 
pursuit of office and power. He had 
only to say the word, and all the in- 
fluence of the queen was ready to 
urge his promotion. But so far is 
he from seeking distinction, that he 
expressly prohibits even his relation- 
ship to Esther from being made 
known. The conduct of the queen 
is equally praiseworthy. Though 
doubtless burning with desire to pro- 
mote the interests of her benefactor, 
she represses her generous feelings 
and yields entirely to his will. 

By the virtue of unaided merit, 
however, Mordecai had already risen 
to an important situation at the court 
of Babylon. We are not informed 
concerning the precise nature of his 
employment, but it was one which' 
placed him near the king's person."^ 
The palace gate was the place where 
the officers of court awaited the king's 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 33 

orders, and accordingly we are in- 
formed, that Mordecai *' sat in the 
king's gate." Here he could be near 
the queen, to receive communications 
from her, to give her advice, to know 
of her welfare, and watch the pro- 
gress of events in the court of this 
great empire. In this situation he 
might have lived and died contented, 
for aught we know, had not God de- 
signed him for higher purposes. 



CHAPTER IV. 

A bloody device formed in the palace — Mordecai 
saves the king's life — His service is recorded in the 
palace journal, but he receives no other reward — A 
new character comes forward to figure in the his- 
tory — Is mude minister of state — His character— 
1 Becomes an object of general adulation — Mordecai 
[ alone refuses to prostrate himself before the favour- 
i ite, who is enraged, and meditates revenge. 

The Hves of kings are far from 
being spent in quiet or safety. Pa- 

3 



34 LIFE OF ESTHETl. 

laces often exhibit the most bloody 
tragedies. These remarks are espe- 
cially true in relation to Eastern 
monarchies. There the monarch is 
generally a despot, distrusting all, 
and distrusted by all. Envy, jealousy, 
and revenge are some of the main- 
springs of action in those despotic 
courts. The monarch is surrounded 
with men who act the part of obse- 
quious servants, fawning flatterers, 
and watchful spies. Happy indeed 
was Ahasuerus in having chosen a 
virtuous and estimable queen, but he 
had not been equally happy in the 
choice of all his favourites. There 
were two among the royal chamber- 
lains, named Bigthan and Teresh. 
Enraged at some affront, real or fan- 
cied, or bribed into the interests of 
some one who had an eye upon the 
throne, they had conspired to mur- 
der the king. Their ready access 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 35 

to Ahasuerus at all times, gave them 
a fair prospect of success ; but there 
Avas a secret Providence well ac- 
quainted with their dark designs, and 
at no loss for means to blast them. 
It was the same Providence that had 
raised Esther to the throne, and the 
king, in identifying his interests with 
this child of Providence, had drawn 
down the protection of Heaven upon 
himself Had not Providence thwart- 
ed the conspiracy, Ahasuerus would 
have been the first victim, and his 
royal spouse probably the next. 

The plot of Bigthan and Teresh 
was discovered by Mordecai. He 
lost no time in communicating it to 
the queen, who revealed it to the 
king. Inquiry was made, the whole 
affair came to light, and the conspi- 
rators were convicted and executed. 

Thus was a crime prevented which 
would have filled the royal palace with 



36 LIFE OF ESTHER. 

blood, thrown the city of Shushan into 
consternation, and the empire into 
disorder, and resulted in the triumph 
of villany over law and justice. 

We should expect this remarkable 
deliverance to be followed by two 
results: — First, The avowal of the 
relationship between Mordecai and 
the queen. This certainly appeared 
a most favourable moment for the 
queen to declare her obligations to 
her excellent relation. Ahasuerus 
could not fail to rejoice in learning 
that the person to whom he owed 
his life was the relative, guardian, 
and protector of his queen. But 
Mordecai was disposed to let matters 
pass quietly on, as they had done. 
He was not seeking honour or dis- 
tinction, and knowing the dire effects 
of inflamed envy among courtiers, 
he prudently resolved to keep the 
secret still concealed. According to 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 37 

her usual custom, Esther left all to 
his discretion, and however much 
against her desire, refrained from 
divulging her relationship to Morde- 
cai. But, secondly. We should sup- 
pose that Ahasuerus would be dis- 
posed, without any prompting from 
his queen, or any one else, to reward 
the faithful and invaluable services 
of Mordecai. But here again we are 
disappointed. The plot is crushed, 
and the conspirators executed, but 
the fidelity which saved the monarch's 
life receives no other reward than 
a record in the chronicles of the em- 
pire. And in these dusty records it 
would probably have slept until Mor- 
decai and Ahasuerus were both asleep 
in their graves, had not the provi- 
dence of God intended to use the 
record for accomplishing its own gra- 
cious designs. 

Another and quite a different sort 



38 LIFE OF ESTHER. 

of character now comes forward to 
figure in the history. There was in 
the court of Ahasuerus a man named 
Haman. He was the son of Ham- 
medatha, and is called an Agagite. 
As Agag is supposed to have been a 
general name for the kings of Ama- 
lek, Haman has been considered a 
descendant from the royal line of 
that nation. This man, probably, 
possessed a pleasing exterior, an ac- 
complishment of no little estimation 
in a Persian court. He doubtless 
had talents also, particularly of the 
showy order, the very kind likely to 
please a monarch like Ahasuerus, 
whose ruling passion was vanity. 
Skilled in the art of flattery, and 
knowing well how to touch the weak 
points of the king's character, Haman 
presented himself as a candidate for 
royal favour under very encouraging 
auspices. His success was equal to 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 39 

his expectations. He daily rose in 
the monarch's estimation, until, out- 
stripping- all his rivals, he became 
chief minister of state. This was 
an office for which he did not possess 
a single solid qualification : for with 
all his showy accomplishments he 
was unprincipled, proud, ambitious, 
crafty, and revengeful. He had, how- 
ever, obtained a post where offices 
and honours were at his disposal, 
and, much as he might be despised 
and envied by the eagle-eyed cour- 
tiers around him, he found them 
ready to fawn and flatter, ^' to bow, 
and cringe, and lick the dust in his 
presence.^' Wherever the imperious 
favourite went he received the in- 
cense of adulation, which day by day 
increased his insolence. But there 
was still one man at the court of 
Ahasuerus who possessed enough of 
dignity and honest independence to 



40 LIFE OF ESTHER* 

refuse this hypocritical adulation. 
He could not consent to fawn about 
the man who was unworthy of his 
esteem, much less to prostrate him- 
self and offer that homage to man 
which is due only to God. This was 
Mordecai. Observing his conduct^ 
his fellow-ofEcers inquired why he did 
not obey the king^s mandate^ and pay 
court to the royal favourite^ urging 
him at the same time to a compliance. 
But Mordecai resisted all their en- 
treaties, and pursued the even tenor 
of his way. At length his refusal 
was whispered in the ear of Haman^ 
together with the fact that Mordecai 
was a Jew. The imperious spirit of 
Haman at once took fire. The bitter 
rancour of his nation toward the Jews 
conspired to add fuel to the fiame^ 
and the gloomy passions of a malig- 
nant soul were summoned in council 
to devise a scheme of dire revenge. 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 4X 



CHAPTER V. 

Haman determines on the extermination of the 
whole Jewish nation, and calls together his magi- 
cians, and lots are cast to determine on what day 
I the plot will be most successful — He applies to the 
king, and obtains a decree for the slaughter of all the 
Jews in the empire — The city of Shushan is per- 
plexed — Haman and the king sit down to drink 
together. 

The plot is at length matured. It 
comes forth dark and malignant as 
from the bosom of a fiend. " Haman 
had learned that Mordecai was a Jew, 
a name that called up the bitterest 
recollections in the breast of an Amale- 
kite, and he resolves at once on the 
total extermination of that people.'^ 
Minds which are weak and wicked 
are often given alike to superstition 
and revenge. We have seen the 
bloody character of the latter in the 
infernal plot for butchering a whole 
nation. We may now see the opera- 



42 LIFE OF ESTHER. 

tion of the former in directing the 
manner of its execution. Haman calls 
together his diviners and magicians 
to find out what day will be most 
lucky for putting his design in exe- 
cution. Lots were cast first for each 
month. The lot fell on the month 
Adar, nearly a year distant. Next 
they were cast for the day of the 
month, and fell upon the thirteenth 
day. And here we can discover 
the overruling providence of God. 
Nearly a whole year would be allowed j 
for defeating the scheme of this wicked 
minister of state, a result plainly 
showing that though '' the lot be cast 
into the lap, yet the whole disposing 
thereof is from the Lord," Prov. 
xvi, 33. 

The plan was now matured, and 
so confident was Haman of its sue- ti 
cess, that he had fixed upon the very 
day for its execution before he had 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 43 

even named it to the king. The fa- 
vourite now approached his credulous 
master, and with no httle art broached 
his subject. '' There is," said he, " a 
certain people scattered abroad and 
dispersed among the people in all 
the provinces of thy kingdom ; and 

f their laws are diverse from all peo- 
ple ; neither keep they the king's 
laws : therefore it is not for the king's 

I profit to suffer them. If it please the 

Iking, let it be written, that they may 
be destroyed : and I will pay ten thou- 
sand talents^ of silver to the hands of 
those that have the charge of the 
business, to bring it into the king's 
treasuries." 

We have already remarked two 
unfortunate traits in the character of 

* Ten thousand talents was, at the lowest calcula- 
tion, more than thirteen millions of dollars. As the 
Jews were an industrious and commercial people, 
Haman would, doubtless, have gathered much more 
than even this amount from the spoils. 



44 LIFE OF ESTHER. 

Ahasuerus. He was credulous and 
excessively given to his pleasures. 
The former rendered him extremely 
open to deception, especially from 
such a favourite as Haman, in whom 
he appears to have placed unlimited 
confidence, and to whom he had al- 
most given up the government of the 
empire. The latter rendered him 
quite too willing that the cares and 
burdens of business should fall to the 
lot of his minister, that he might have 
the more leisure for enjoyment. Sup- 
posing that Haman thoroughly under- 
stood his business, and had only the 
welfare of the kingdom at heart, he 
yielded to his proposition without the 
slightest investigation of the matter. 

What cause have we for gratitude 
to God that our lives and liberties are 
not at the mercy of an indolent and 
credulous monarch, or a revengeful 
and unprincipled state officer! Let 



LIFE OP ESTHER. 45 

US prize that constitution and those 
laws which secure to every citizen 
his property, liberty, and life. 

" And what is life "? 
'Tis not to stalk abroad and draw fresh air 
From time to time, or gaze upon the sun : 
'Tis to be free." 

The king now took his ring con- 
taining the seal of the empire from 
his finger, and gave it to Haman to 
affix to any decree he might choose 
to draw up for the destruction of the 
Jews. Overjoyed at the prospect of 
indulging his revenge to the full, 
Haman immediately summoned the 
royal scribes, or secretaries, and is- 
sued his bloody decree. Letters were 
written in the king's name, sealed with 
his seal, and sent out by posts to all 
the governors of the different pro- 
vinces commanding them " to de- 
stroy, TO KILL, AND TO CAUSE TO 

PERISH ALL Jews, both young and 



46 LIFE OF ESTHER. 

OLD, LITTLE CHILDREN AND WOMEN, 
ON ONE DAY, UPON THE THIRTEENTH 
DAY OF THE TWELFTH MONTH, OR 

Adar." That a sufficient stimulant 
inciting to this horrid butchery might 
not be wanting, the depraved but 
powerful principle of avarice was put 
in requisition. The executioners 
were to receive the immense booty 
furnished by the property of the whole 
Jewish nation. Such demoniacal 
fury can scarcely find a parallel, ex- 
cept in the doings of those men who I 
framed the inquisition ; saturated the 
stones of its dungeons with the tears 
of innocence ; broiled the defenceless 
on gridirons ; tore their quivering 
sinews with heated pincers ; dislocated 
their joints on racks ; kindled up the 
flames of their auto da fes, and de- 
luged France with the bloody mas- 
sacre of St. Bartholomew's. 

This decree fell like a thunderbolt 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 47 

npon the nation. The Jews as a con- 
quered people had quietly submitted 
to the laws of the kingdom. They 
had been treated with kindness by 
the wisest and best princes of the 
empire, and had been allowed to re- 
build their temple, and re-establish 
their worship at Jerusalem. They 
were, moreover, peaceable and indus- 
trious citizens, and had become a very 
numerous, wealthy, and widely ex- 
tended body in the Persian kingdom. 
*' What crime had they committed? 
Whence originated this bloody edict ? 
Who could be safe in a kingdom 
where a whole nation was to be 
slaughtered in a day? The king, 
though credulous and fond of his 
pleasures, had not been esteemed a 
cruel prince ; had he all at once be- 
come a relentless tyrant ? What dark 
storm might be expected next to 
burst upon the nation ?" Such queries 



48 LIFE OP ESTHER. 

as these would naturally arise in the 
minds of thinking men, and accord- 
ingly we are told that '* the city of 
Shushan was perplexed." It found 
there were dark and bloody councils 
in the cabinet, and knew not for 
whose destruction the next bolt might 
be forged. 

Haman, havingdespatched his mes- 
sengers of death into all parts of the 
empire, and thus far succeeded en- 
tirely to his wishes, ^' sat down with 
the king to drink." Perhaps he feared 
the conscience of the monarch might 
smite him, and he might wish to re- 
call his orders, and to prevent which, 
he intended to divert his attention 
and keep him drinking. Or, perhaps, 
flushed with the success of his plot, 
he sits down to enjoy his triumph and 
his wine together. 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 4§ 



CHAPTER VL 

Effects produced by the publication of Hainan's 
Uoody decree — Distress of Mordecai — Message to 
the queen — Reply — A second message. 

The decree had now reached the 
different provinces and cities of the 
empire, and everywhere the procla- 
mation produced its natural results. 
It awakened those feelings of national 
rancour which, thouo^h never totallv 
annihilated in a great empire com- 
posed of different nations, usually be- 
come softened and allayed by time. 
It gave full scope to all the jealousy, 
enmity, and revenge which had grown 
out of private or family feuds between 
the Jews and their neighbours. — 
Every worthless person who might 
chance to have a quarrel with a Jew 
could now vent his bitter scorn,* and 
look upon himself as a legalized mur- 
derer. On the other hand, it spread 

4 



50 L-IFE OF ESTHER. 

dismay and consternation among the 
devoted Israelites throughout the 
whole empire. It extorted one uni- 
versal piercing wail, for ^'m every 
province whithersoever the king's 
commandment and his decree came 
there was great mourning among the 
Jews, and fasting, and weeping, and 
wailing, and many lay in sackcloth 
and ashes." 

Amid this general lamentation there 
was one whose grief was unutterable. 
This was Mordecai. By nature a 
man of the keenest susceptibilities, 
and by principle and habit a genuine 
patriot, he was overwhelmed in view- 
ing the approaching calamities of his 
brethren. His anguish was excited 
to the highest pitch by the considera- 
tion that he had been the occasion of 
bringing this calamity upon his peo- 
ple. He did not indeed repent of 
having refused to yield that idolatrous 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 51 

homage to Haman which the haughty 
favourite had demanded. But still to 
be even innocently instrumental of 
the calamities of his countrymen was 
most painful to him. In a paroxysm 
of anguish he rent his clothes, put 
sackcloth upon his loins, and with 
every indication of the most poignant 
sorrow ''cried with a loud mid hitter 
cryy Unmindful of himself and all 
around him, he filled the streets with 
his wailings, and came arrayed in 
sackcloth to the very gates of the 
palace. The voice of his sorrows 
would doubtless have entered the 
palace and echoed through its festive 
halls had not a law existed, absurd 
as it was unjust, prohibiting any one 
from entering the king's gate clad in 
the robes of mourning. "Out of the 
king's gate had lately passed orders 
which had throw^n the capital into 
perplexity, spread dismay through the 



53 I'IFE OF ESTHER. 

empire, and made many lie in sack- 
cloth ; but these orders must not be 
allowed to reflect their shadows, to 
disturb the gayeties they left behind, 
or to which they gave occasion." 

Palace gates are open wide to let 
in the comforts and the luxuries pro- 
cured by the industry and labours of 
subjects. But alas ! how often have 
they been barred and bolted against 
the cries of those who have sought 
refuge from the cruelty of the op- 
pressor ! 

Justice and sympathy had not, how- 
ever, entirely fled from the palace of 
Ahasuerus. There was still one there 
in whose heart glowed every tender 
and generous emotion, one placed 
there by the hand of Providence on 
purpose to open the gate to the cry 
of an injured nation. Esther was 
there, and the news of Mordecafs 
grief soon reached her ear. ^' So 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 55 

Esther's maids and her chamberlains 
came and told her. Then was the 
queen exceedingly grieved." She 
knew Mordecai too well to suppose 
for one moment that the cause of his 
grief was trivial, and despatched a 
messenger with suitable apparel and 
a request that he would lay aside his 
mourning attire. But even this af- 
fectionate token of regard from his 
royal daughter was insufficient to af- 
ford him the least consolation. 

He refused to receive it, which in- 
creased her grief and surprise. She 
immediately sent Hatach, her prin- 
cipal servant, to obtain from Mordecai 
an explanation of the cause of his 
distress. Mordecai gave him a full 
account of Haman's proceedings, and 
a copy of the decree which had been 
issued for the utter extermination of 
the Jews. He also instructed him to 
bear a charge from him to the queen 



54 LIFE OF ESTHER. 

to go in to the king and make suppli- 
cation for the lives of her people. 

This message opens to our view 
another noble trait in the character of 
Mordecai. When his own interests, 
his wealth, honour, or advancement, 
are the only questions at issue, he 
expressly prohibits Esther from 
making known their relationship. 
But when his brethren are in danger, 
every other consideration gives way 
to patriotism, and he charges her 
most solemnly to go without delay 
and make known her kindred, and 
plead for their lives. 

On the reception of this message 
the feelings of the queen can be bet- 
ter imagined than described. The 
sacred historian, with characteristic 
simplicity, passes by the scene, simply 
giving us the facts in the case, and 
leaving us to draw our own inferences. 
Esther again despatched her faithful 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 55 

messenger to Mordecai with an accu- 
rate account of her situation. She 
informed him that a law existed for- 
bidding any man or woman, without 
exception, to enter uncalled into the 
inner court of the palace. Unless the 
monarch was pleased to hold out 
the golden sceptre as a token of 
his pardon, death was the certain 
penalty. 

The Persian monarchs affected the 
highest majesty, even to the assuming 
of divine honoui^. Their absurd laws 
shut them out from intercourse with 
their subjects, and closed up almost 
every avenue of justice. Every spe- 
cies of information that they received 
was communicated by a few chief 
favourites, who, under pretence of the 
most profound respect and obedience, 
contrived to engross the government 
almost entirely to themselves. The 
favourite might oppress with impunity, 



^ LIFE OF ESTHER. 

well knowing that every petition or 
rentionstrance from aggrieved inno- 
cence must pass through his hands, 
or those of some of his minions, ere it 
would be likely to reach the throne. 

But besides this difficulty, the queen 
had still another to encounter. Either 
Haman had by his spies obtained 
some knowledge of her intercourse 
with Mordecai, and had been en- 
deavouring to draw the king's atten- 
tions and affections from her, or from 
some other cause he had not sent for 
her, nor had she seen him for the last 
thirty days. Here then was difficulty 
heaped upon difficulty. First, she 
had the power and influence of Haman 
to contend against. Secondly, the 
pride of the monarch would be ad- 
verse to her cause, and the custom of 
the nation positively forbade the repeal 
of any law once passed. Thirdly^ 
the petition for a repeal could not even 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 5*? 

be made without endangering the hfe 
of the petitioner. Fourthly, the queen 
had not been called into the king's 
presence during the last thirty days, 
and had reason to fear that all was 
not well. All this she made known 
to Mordecai. 

And what will Mordecai do now ? 
What reply will he make to this 
cheerless message ? Surely the storm 
gathers, dangers and difficulties seem 
marshalling themselves on every hand 
for the onset, and scarce a ray of 
light breaks through the surrounding 
gloom from any quarter. But great 
difficulties call out the energies of 
great minds. Mordecai has no thought 
of either flying from the impending 
storm, or sinking down to die beneath 
its fury. And as he shrinks not from 
the danger himself, so he is ready to 
expose one dearer to him than life, 
his own beloved Esther. He returns 



58 LIFE OF ESTHER. 

a message in words that burn — one 
appealing to every virtuous, pious, and 
patriotic feeling of her heart, and cal- 
culated to fire her soul to deeds of 
heroic valour. He first, with equal 
wisdom and justice, shows Esther that 
she is called upon to act for her own 
"personal safety. Though queen of the 
empire, she was a Jewess, and as 
fully embraced in the terrible edict as 
the most obscure Israelite in the whole 
realm. And what if this had been 
kept secret, there were doubtless 
many who knew it. Or, if indeed 
there were not, could she remain 
tranquil when the awful day should 
arrive, and the blood of the whole 
nation be flowing around her ? Would 
not her terrors become informers 
against her ? The purport of this part 
of Mordecai's appeal is this: "I can 
fully appreciate all the difiiculties 
you have named. They are indeed 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 59 

many and appalling. I will even 
allow it to be qnite possible you may 
lose your life in attempting to save 
your nation. But suppose even that 
you do. Is it not even now devoted 
to destruction ? Is there not a decree 
already passed dooming to death all 
Jews, little children and women? 
And would it not be more noble and 
praiseworthy to perish in attempting 
to save your people than to sit still, 
and after all perish with them ?" 

But Mordecai does not end his 
appeal here : he goes on. But '' if 
thou altogether boldest thy peace at 
this time, then shall there enlarge- 
ment and deliverance arise to the 
Jews from another place ; but thou 
and thy father's house shall be de- 
stroyed." As though he had said, 
" God's people will surely be deliver- 
ed. This murderous edict will never 
be executed. God has not wrought 



6(X LIFE OF ESTHER. 

SO many wonders in favour of Israel 
to bring them to such an end. He 
will vindicate his own honour. He 
who made the waters of the Red Sea 
to stand as a wall, who opened for 
his people a passage in the depths, 
who fed them on manna in the wilder- 
ness, who gave them, even in cap- 
tivity, favour in the eyes of Cyrus 
and all his successors — He will never 
suffer them to perish under the hand 
of a persecuting Amalekite. No: 
Israel shall be delivered. And now, 
behold thy glorious opportunity. May 
not my beloved Esther be the honour- 
ed instrument in this great salvation ? 
May not her name in after ages be 
ranked with the worthies of Israel? 
And will she let such an opportunity 
pass unimproved ? Shall it be said 
by future generations, that a Jewess 
wore the crown of Persia, and yet 
would have allowed her whole nation 



LIFE OF ESTHER. %^ 

to perish under a sanguinary edict 
without even asking its repeal from 
her own husband? Would not that 
Providence w^hich shall save Israel 
visit sore judgment upon the head of 
such a recreant descendant of Abra- 
ham? Would not the day of Israel's 
deliverance be the day of thy de- 
struction, and thy name and thy fa- 
ther's house be blotted out before the 
Lord? But I have already gone too 
far. Do not for a moment suppose 
that I think Hadassah capable of such 
cowardice. So far from it, I already 
view her as the chosen instrument of 
God to accomphsh his merciful ^de- 
signs. I have seen her raised from 
a helpless orphan, an orphan exile, 
to the throne of Persia, and for what? 
Who knoweth whether thou art come 
to the kingdom for such a time as 
this ? Providence points the way, go 
forward, be courageous, be strong. 



62 LIFE OF ESTHER. 

Heaven shall smile upon thy effort, 
and henceforth ' all generations shall 
call thee blessed.' " 



CHAPTER VIII. 

Pride of the Persian monarchs — Inaccessible to 
their subjects — Esther is resolved to rescue her 
people, or perish in the attempt — God's throne 
always accessible — Heroic character of M'oman — 
A fast — Esther ventures into the presence of the 
king— Ahasuerus holds out the golden sceptre — 
The queen invites him and Haman to her banquet 
— Invitation to a second banquet — Haman meets 
Mordecai, who still refuses to prostrate himself-^ 
Goes home in a rage — A council — A gallows erect- 
ed for Mordecai. 

Wishing to be regarded by their 
subjects as a species of divinity, 
and to receive from them a kind of 
divine homage, the Persian monarchs 
w^ithdrew from their subjects, and 
hedged up the way to the throne by 
the fearful penalty of death. To 
reach the presence of Ahasuerus, 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 63 

Esther had this dread penalty of Per- 
sian law to encounter. She knew 
not but the monarch who had de- 
prived one queen of her crown for 
refusing to come into his presence 
when called, might deprive another 
of hfe for venturing there uncalled. 
But she knew of one Kingf who had 
not, like Ahasuerus, barred iiis sub- 
jects from his presence. This was 
the King of kings, and the Lord of 
lords. She had deliberated upon her 
duty in the present trying emergency, 
had counselled with Mordecai, and 
had now resolved. Her mind was 
fixed upon rescuing her people, or 
perishing in the attempt. But as she 
had not formed her purpose in any 
fit of enthusiasm, so she did not enter 
upon its execution rashly. Knowing 
that " the hearts of kings are in the 
hands of the Lord, and that he turn- 
eth them as the rivers of water whi- 



64 LIFE OF ESTHER. 

thersoever he will/' her first appeal 
was to his ever accessible throne. 
But she went not alone. The Jews 
as a people had sinned, or God would 
never have allowed such an impend- 
ing storm to gather over them. It 
was needful they should repent and 
humble themselves in this dav of 
rebuke and calamity. Again, "the 
effectual fervent prayer of a right- 
eous man availeth much." There 
were doubtless many righteous Jews 
in the royal city. The queen there- 
fore sent to Mordecai, saying, '' Go, 
gather together all the Jews that are 
present in Shushan, and fast ye for 
me, and neither eat nor drink, three 
days, night nor day ; I also and my 
maidens^ will fast likewise,! and so 

* Her maidens were probably of the Jewish na- 
tion, or proselytes, or i( not, were so strongly at- 
tached to this excellent lady, as to be willing to do 
any thing she directed. 

t It is not likely the queen literally abstained 



LIFE OF ESTHER, 65 

will I go in unto the king, which is 
not according to the law, and if I 

PERISH, I PERISH." 

Here is female heroism, here is 
woman in her true character. Form- 
ed by the God of nature to watch 
over the human race in the helpless 
period of existence, yet knowing her 
success depends more on skill than 
strength, woman is ordinarily charac- 
terized by her watchful solicitude to 
anticipate and avoid danger. With 
a keen eye she sees the coming evil 
in the distance, and avoids the en- 
counter, or with art and dexterity she 
slips aside at its approach. But be- 
hind all these qualities there lies a 
courage undaunted, a fortitude un- 
shaken, an energy and a perseverance 

from all food for three days, as this would have 
prostrated her strength, and unnerved her for her 
approaching trial ; but the fast she advised and kept 
herself was like that of Daniel, who ate no plea- 
sant foed^ nor any, except in very small quantities, 

5 



66 tlPEi OF ESTHEK. 

tinequalled. When these are once 
fairly aroused, the frailer sex often 
becomes the stronger, and woman 
comes forward into the foremost 
ranks to face difficulty and danger. 
^^If I perish, I perish,^'' is the lan- 
guage of her deeds, as well as of her 
lips. 

The message of the queen to Mor- 
decai was like the silver light which 
streaks the east after a night of dark- 
ness. Though small and feeble its 
gleams, it is the presage of coming 
day. He hailed it as the harbinger 
of morn, after a night of tempests 
and blackness. With a cheerful cou- 
rage he went and called the Jews 
together to implore the blessing of 
God upon the queen's adventure into 
the royal presence. They fasted, 
they humbled themselves before the 
Lord, and earnestly sought his favour. 

The third day at length arrived. 



LIFE OF fiJSTHER. 67 

To appear with becoming dignity, 
the queen laid aside her robes of 
mourning, and, putting on her royal 
apparel, entered the presence cham- 
ber of Ahasuerus. The king saw 
her, and held out the golden sceptre 
in token of his pleasure at her ap- 
proach, and his readiness to grant 
her request. She approached and 
touched the top of it as an evidence 
of her gratitude and submission. 
"What wilt thou, Queen Esther?" 
s^aid the king, " and what is thy re- 
quest ? It shall be given thee, to the 
half of the kingdom." To endear 
herself the more to the king, and 
better dispose him to grant her re- 
quest, Esther delayed presenting her 
petition for the present. Her only 
request now is, " If it seem good 
unto the king, let the king and Ha- 
man come this day unto the banquet 
which I have prepared for him." 



68 LIFE OF ESTHER. 

He replied, ^' Cause Haman to make 
haste, that he may do as Esther hath 
said," so the king and Haman went 
in to the banquet. And the king 
said to Esther at the banquet of wine, 
*' What is thy petition ? and it shall 
be granted thee ; and what is thy re- 
quest ? even to the half of the king- 
dom it shall be performed." To en- 
gage still farther the king's affections 
by a second entertainment, and to 
intimate to him that her petition was 
one of more than ordinary import- 
ance, she replied, ^' My petition, and 
my request is. If I have found favour 
in the sight of the king, and if it 
please the king to grant my petition, 
let the king and Haman come to the 
banquet that I shall prepare for them, 
and I will do to-morrow as the king 
hath said." I will acquaint thee with 
my request. 

While there is hope in a sinner's 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 69 

case, his mind is often "like the 
troubled sea, which cannot rest." God 
in mercy forbids that he should re- 
main at ease in his guilt. He makes 
him feel the emptiness of the world, 
he visits him with sore compunctions 
of conscience, and terrifies him with 
dark visions of the future. But when 
a transgressor passes tlie bounds of 
hope, and is given up to a reprobate 
mind, he feels little compunction for 
his crimes, and remains at ease in the 
full enjoyment of his guilty pleasures. 
It is then that we often see '^ the wick- 
ed in great power, and spreading him- 
self like a green bay-tree. His eyes 
stand out with fatness, and he has 
more than heart can wish. Pride 
compasseth him as a chain ; violence 
covereth him as a garment. Behold, 
these are the ungodly that prosper 
in the world : they increase in riches : 
they are not in trouble like other 



70 LIFE OF ESTHER. 

men, neither are they plagued like 
other men." Thus it was with Ha- 
man : he was the most unprincipled 
and wicked man in the whole Per- 
sian empire : and yet had he as little 
compunction of conscience as any 
man in the whole empire. If he 
had any sorrow, it was not for his 
crimes, but because he could not be 
as wicked as he would. 

Flushed with his success, and 
elated with his honours, he went 
forth from the banquet that day 
'^joyful, and with a glad heart, '^^ On 
his way he met Mordecai in the 
king's gate, who '' stood not iif to 
reverence him, " nor moved''' to do 
him honour. 

Haman had probably heard of the 
deep distress Mordecai had manifest- 
ed when his murderous edict was 
published, and doubtless expected, 
when they should next rneet, Morde- 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 71 

cai would be ready to lick the dust 
before him. But behold, here he is 
unmoved as ever. Though he treats 
him with no positive disrespect, 
though he does not rail on him as 
a tyrant and murderer, still he does 
what galls the pride of Haman more : 
he shows himself entirely above his 
favour or his frowns. This was too 
much for Haman : his malice burned 
within him. Conceiving it beneath his 
dignity, however, to play the assassin 
in public, he ^^ refrained himself," but 
went home filled with the dire spirit 
of revenge, ^' One private man who 
despised his greatness and disdained 
submission, while a whole kingdom 
trembled before him, one spirit which 
the utmost stretch of his power could 
neither subdue, nor humble^ blasted 
his triumphs." 

Unable any longer to conceal his 
agony, Haman called together his 



72 LIFE OF ESTHER. 

friends, with Zeresh his wife. He 
told them of the glory of his riches, 
and the multitude of his children, 
and of the honours the king had 
heaped upon him, and how he had 
advanced him above all the princes 
of the realm. He added moreover, 
"Yea, Esther the queen did let no 
man come in with the king unto the 
banquet that she had prepared but 
myself, and to-morrow am I invited 
unto her also with the king.'* And 
what next? what is the conclusion 
after all this long preamble? "Yet 
all this availeth me nothing, so long 
as I see Mordecai the Jew sitting at 
the king's gate." 

Haman's friends perceived how 
willingly he would dispense with 
his former resolution of delaying the 
execution of Mordecai until the day 
determined by lot. They therefore 
advised him to share a portion of the 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 73 

pleasure he anticipated in seeing the 
blood of the whole Jewish nation 
flow hj putting Mordecai to death 
at once. '* Let a gallows be made," 
said they, " fifty cubits (seventy-five 
feet) high, and to-morrow speak thou 
to the king that Mordecai may be 
hanged thereon. Then go thou in 
merrily with the king unto the ban- 
quet." This advice '^pleased Ha- 
man.^^ The anticipation of speedy 
revenge gave him more pleasure 
than all his power, riches, and ho- 
nours. Not doubting that the king, 
who had granted him an edict for 
the destruction of the whole Jewish 
* nation, w^ould readily give Morde- 
cai into his hands, he gave orders 
forthwith for the erection of his gal- 
lows. 

The instrument for Mordccai's de- 
struction being prepared, Haman re- 
tired to rest, pleased at the thought 



74 LIFE OF ESTHER. 

of seeing his victim struggling in the 
agonies of death the next day, and 
then of going in merrily with the 
king to the banquet 

CHAPTER VIT. 

Haman goes to sleep, anticipating the luxury of 
revenge in the morning, but God wakes the king to 
blast his schemes — The court journal read to the 
king — A chapter on Mordecai's services — Morning 
breaks, and Haman comes to procure an order for 
Mordecai's execution — A disappointment — Haman 
playing the groom for Mordecai — Reflections — Ha- 
man goes home mourning — A second council — ^^Mi- 
serable comforters — The king's officers come to 
hasten Haman to the banquet. 

The wicked sleep, but God wakes. 
While Haman enjoys the luxury of • 
his golden dreams. Providence iu 
quiet and easy majesty is moving 
events onward to their wise and be- 
nevolent consummation. The com- 
mencement is with the monarch. 
Ahasuerus had retired from the ban- 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 75 

quet ; the curtams of evening were 
drawn, and the silence of night in- 
vited to repose. But the king could 
not rest Sleep, gentle sleep, had 
fled from his downy couch, and wake- 
ful visions played around him. In- 
fluenced perhaps by no higher motive 
than a desire for amusement, or else 
perchance disturbed by conscience 
with the idea that some faithful sub- 
ject, some meritorious deed, had been 
left unrewarded, the king called for 
'' the book of records," in which the 
occurrences of each day were noted 
down. 

The secretary opened the volume, 
and read the account of a plot 
against the life of the king by Big- 
than and Teresh, and of its discove- 
ry by Mordecai. Ahasuerus inquired, 
" What honour and dignity hath been 
done to Mordecai for this ?" . Ah, in- 
deed ! What honour ? What dignity? 



76 LIFE OF ESTHER. 

The honour and dignity of being 
sold to destruction, together with his 
whole nation — of being sacrificed 
to gratify the blood-thirsty spirit of a 
man who would probably have taken 
the life of Ahasuerus as readily as 
that of Mordecai, if he could have 
advanced his owai interests by such 
a deed. 

The convenient memory of Pha- 
roah's butler waked up when he 
could turn Joseph's skill in inter- 
preting dreams to his own account. 
And so this courtier, who probably 
had concerned himself very little 
about Mordecai's reward, or even 
about the impending danger hang- 
ing over his head, found it quite con- 
venient to remember Mordecai now 
that he saw the monarch's slumber- 
ing conscience awaking. He replied, 
^^ There is nothing done for him." 

Morning had now thrown its mel- 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 77 

low light into the palace, and the 
sound of footsteps was heard in the 
court. The king inquired, '^ Who is 
in the court ?" The servants replied, 
"Behold, Haman standeth in the 
court." His impatience to see Mor- 
decai upon the gallows had urged 
him thus early to the palace, and he 
waited with anxiety to present his re- 
quest to the king. '^ Let him come in," 
said the monarch. A very favoura- 
ble reception for Haman — the king 
is alone and disengaged. Haman is 
about to speak, but the king breaks 
silence. " What," says he, " shall 
be done unto the man whom the 
king delighteth to honour ?" Haman 
pauses. Mark that perturbation upon 
his countenance. It is the index of 
what is passing within. Two of the 
master passions of his soul, vanity 
and revenge, are struggling for the 
ascendancy. Methinks I can read 



78 LIFE OF ESTHER. 

his very thoughts. " The man whom 
the king dehghteth to honour! And 
who can that be ? Ah, who indeed 
but his prime minister, his special 
favourite, myself: well, honour never 
comes amiss to me. But I wish the 
king had said nothing about it just 
now, for I can enjoy neither honour 
nor any thing else till I have my re- 
venge on that insolent Jew. But I 
must smother my malice a little 
longer, and answer the king's ques- 
tion. And now, seeing that I am to 
provide honours for myself, I will 
prescribe liberally." And Haman 
answered the king, '' For the man 
whom the king" delighteth to honour, 
let the royal apparel be brought 
which the king useth to wear, and 
the horse that the king rideth upon 
and the crown-roval which is set 
upon his head : and let this apparel 
and horse be delivered to the hand of 






LIFE OF ESTHER. 79 

one of the king's most noble princes, 
that they may array the man withal 
whom the king delighteth to honour, 
and bring him on horseback through 
the street of the city, and proclaim 
before him, Thus shall it be done to 
the man whom the king delighteth to 
honour." 

The countenance of Ahasuerus 
testifies his approbation of this ad- 
vice, and Haman waits to hear his 
own name announced as the man 
" whom the king delighteth to ho- 
nour." Hearken, the king speaks ! 
*' Make haste, Haman, and take the 
apparel and the horse as thou hast 
said, and do even so to Mordecai 
THE Jew, that sitteth at the king's 
gate : let nothing fail of all that thou 
hast spoken." 

What is the matter, Haman? Have 
you trod upon a serpent unawares? 
See him as he passes out at the 



80 LIFE OF ESTHER. 

king's gate. Did ever man look so 
meanly before? See him approach 
Mordecai. He has no spirit left : he 
cannot meet a single glance of Mor- 
decai's eye. But he can hold the 
stirrup, and lead the horse for him 
through the city of Shushan. "Then 
took Haman the apparel and the 
horse, and arrayed Mordecai, and . 
brought him on horseback through 
the street of the city, and proclaimed 
before him. Thus shall it be done 
unto the man whom the king delight- 

eth to honour." 

We cannot suppose that this parade, 
considered merely in itself, was pleas- 
ing to Mordecai. He had not been 
accustomed to indulge in a passion 
for applause, and had sense enough to 
estimate such an idle pageant at its^ 
true value. But viewed in connection* 
with the present circumstances, it 
must have given him satisfaction. To 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 81 

see that his services were remem- 
bered by the king at this important 
crisis, and to behold the man who 
was seeking his hfe thus humbled, 
were circumstances calculated to en- 
courage his heart and strengthen his 
faith. 

The parade was now over, and 
Mordecai very gladly resigned his 
robes of royalty, and cheerfully re- 
turned to the king's gate. *' But 
Haman hasted to his house, mourning 
and having his head covered." 

Weak heads become giddy upon, 
any sudden elevation. Had Mordecai 
been only an ordinary man, he would 
have shown his weakness on this oc- 
casion. He would probably have 
seized upon the moment when both 
the courtiers and the populace were 
uniting to do him honour as a favour- 
able one to turn the tide against 

Haman. He would have entered the 

6 



82 LIFE OF ESTHER. 

palace, told the king of his services, 
reproached his enemy, and asked the 
repeal of the bloody edict. But this 
premature course would quite likely 
have proved fatal to the cause he 
v^ished to promote. It is equally 
dangerous to miticipate Providence, 
and to refuse to fall in v^^ith its de- 
signs when our way is fairly open for 
action. Mordecai chose that events 
should move on in the order already 
begun, and therefore returned quietly 
to attend on the king's business. 

But look on the other hand. What 
a contrast between him and Haman ! 
A mean spirit can neither bear ho- 
nour nor rebuke. Haman has been ele- 
vated, and we behold him insufferably 
vain and arrogant. He has now met 
with a little abasement, and we see 
a meanness of spirit deserving nothing 
but contempt. Had he been a man 
of truly noble bearing, such an event 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 83 

Would have been far from disturbing 
his quiet. He would have regarded 
it as both a pleasure and an honour 
to be selected as *' one of the king's 

MOST NOBLE PRINCES" tO do hoUOUr 

to a man who had saved the life of 
his king. But there was nothing of 
this true greatness of soul about 
Haman. He went home covered 
with confusion, stung with envy, and 
mourning as under the bitterest af- 
fliction. 

Unable to sustain himself with the 
spirit of a man, he called together his 
wife and friends, and sought relief in 
unbosoming to them his griefs. But 
the wicked are usually most mise- 
rable comforters. The infidel Hume 
by his sophistry induced his mother 
to renounce Christianity ; but on her 
death-bed she wrote him a letter tell- 
ing him she found herself hopeless 
and comfortless, and requesting from 



g4 LIFE OF ESTHER. 

him those consolations which, alas ! 
his dark and cheerless skepticism 
could not give. Voltaire during his 
last illness was so far from finding 
comfort in the society of his infidel 
associates, that he cursed them as his 
greatest tormentors. So it was with 
Haman's friends. They had been 
ready enough to favour his dark 
schemes when he rode triumphantly 
the swelling tide of prosperity, but no 
sooner does the storm begin to gather 
than he has reason to exclaim, 
'' Miserable comforters are ye all." 

It was but the day before that he 
came in burning with revenge against 
Mordecai. He then called together 
the same persons for counsel. And 
w^hat advice did they give ? Did they 
endeavour to allay his passion ? Did 
they tell him of the impolicy and un- 
reasonableness of his conduct ? No : 
they fomented his anger and sharp- 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 85 

ened his appetite for revenge. But 
now his tempters turn his tormentors : 
they thrust daggers into his wounds. 
'^ Then said his wise men and Zeresh 
his wife unto him, If Mordecai be of 
the seed of the Jews, before whom 
thou hast begun to fall, thou shalt not 
prevail against him, but shalt surely 
fall before him." 

So remarkable had been God's 
providences in favour of the Jews 
that even their heathen neighbours 
had often been forced to see and con- 
fess them. Thus the privy council 
of Haman begin to see and predict 
that no weapon formed against God's 
people can prosper. 

Scarcely had this ominous pre- 
diction been uttered before the king's 
chamberlains came to hasten Haman 
to the banquet. He goes, but not 
quite so " merrily" as he had anti- 
cipated in the morning. 



86 3LIFE OF ESTHER. 



CHAPTER IX. 



The king and Hainan arrive at the banquet — 
Ahasuerus begins to be impatient to know the nature 
of the queen's petition — A scene of thrilling interest 
— Wrath of the king — Haman's mean spirit and 
cowardice — Hanged on the gibbet prepared for Mor- 
decai — Retributive providence. 

Without any time to recover his 
composure, or frame any new devices 
for sustaining his falling fortunes, 
Haman was hurried away to the 
banquet. With forced smiles, which 
concealed a heavy heart, he is seated 
by the side of the monarch and his 
royal spouse. Here are the three 
sitting at the table together, but how 
different are their thoughts. Leaving 
Haman, of whose inward perturbations 
we can easily form an idea, we may 
turn to Ahasuerus. The queen has 
ventured into his presence at the peril 
of her life to offer some petition. He 
has encouraged her to prefer it at 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 87 

once, but she has only said, *^Let 
the king and Haman come to the 
banquet" They have attended, and 
again he has desired her to make 
known her request, but she delays, 
and invites them to a second banquet. 
" What can it be ? What is her de- 
sire ? What mean those tender, im- 
ploring glances ? What is that in her 
looks which seems so beseechingly 
to implore my protection ?" The king 
begins to feel a most irrepressible 
anxiety to know the secret He, 
therefore, again urges her to make 
known her request^ repeating the 
assurance, ^' It shall be granted thee, 
it shall be performed even to the half 
of the kingdom." '.' Then Esther the 
queen answered, and said. If I have 
found favour in thy sight, O king, and 
if it please the king, let my life be 

GIVEN ME AT MY PETITION AND MY 
PEOPLE.AT MY REQUEST." With wh^^t 



88 LIFE OF ESTHER. 

astonishment must this speech have 
filled the mind of the king ! '' Let my 
life be given me ! And is the wife of 
my bosom, the queen of the empire, 
before me supplicating for her life?" 
The queen proceeds : — " For we are 
sold, I and my people, to be destroyed, 
to be slain, and to perish ; but if we 
had been sold for bondmen and bond- 
women, I had held my tongue, al- 
though the enemy could not counter- 
vail the king's damage.""^ With 
mingled emotions of surprise, anxiety, 
and indignation, the king eagerly in- 
quired, *'Who is he? and where is 
he that durst presume in his heart to 
do so ?" He wonders where a mis- 
creant can be found sufficiently vile, 
or a desperado sufficiently bold to 

* Esther means that Haman was not a man of so 
much consequence as to counterrail the infamy 
which would fall on the king, and the loss which his 
kingdom would sustain by the sacrifice of a whole 
nation to his resentment.— C&/5:e. 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 89 

attempt such a thing. Pointing to the 
prime minister, the queen replies, 
*' The adversary and enemy is this 
WICKED Haman." Here he is, let him 
answer for himself, for therefore was 
he invited. No wonder the blood re- 
treats from Haman's cheeks ; that his 
lip quivers, and the bands of his loins 
are loosed, so that his knees smite 
together. Cruelty and cowardice are 
twin brothers, and Haman is as con- 
spicuous for the one as for the other. 
Arising from the banquet in his wrath, 
and without uttering a word, the king 
hastily retired into the palace garden. 
This he did to cool and allay his 
troubled and inflamed spirits, to con- 
sider what was proper to be done, and 
we would hope to lament his own 
credulity in giving up a whole nation 
to the will of an unworthy favourite. 
Haman in the mean time saw that 
dangers were gathering thick and fast 



90 LIFE OF ESTHER. 

around him. In the fierceness of the 
king's countenance, in the agitation 
of his frame, he read, and in his own 
conscious guilt he felt, the presages 
of his doom. Cowardly and mean- 
spirited in his adversity, as he had been 
haughty and imperious in his pros- 
perity, instead of preparing to meet 
his fate like a man, he first '' stood 
up to make request for his life to the 
queen," and then threw himself pros- 
trate at her feet on the sofa or couch 
on which, according to the Persian 
custom, she reclined. What a change 
is here ! Behold the man who could 
be satisfied with nothing less than the 
utter extermination of the whole 
Jewish nation prostrate and suing 
for life at the feet of a Jewess. See 
the man who has just been erecting 
a gallows for Mordecai imploring 
protection from Mordecai's foster 
daughter. 



^ LIFE OF ESTHER. 91 

While Haman was in this position 
the king came in. His whole aspect 
showed that he w^as burning with in- 
dignation at the man whom he had 
raised from the dust, loaded with 
honours, and advanced above all the 
princes of the realm ; but who had 
abused his confidence, brought odium 
upon his benefactor, obtained a de- 
cree for the extermination of thou- 
sands of his innocent subjects, and 
obliged even his queen to sue for her 
life. Casting an eye on the prostrate 
minister, he uttered an expression in- 
dicating that he considered no act too 
base for so vile a miscreant to be 
guilty of "As the word went out 
of the king's mouth, they covered 
Haman's face." Covering the face of 
condemned criminals was the custom 
in eastern countries, and the officers 
of Ahasuerus had already interpreted 
their master's will concerning Haman. 



92 LIFE OF ESTHER. 

Harbonah, the chamberlain, who had 
been sent to attend him to the ban- 
quet, mow turns his accuser, and tells 
what he had seen in the court of his 
house : '' Behold also the gallows, 
fifty cubits high, which Haman had 
made for Mordecai, who had spoken 
good for the king, standeth in the 
house of Haman." ''Let him be 
hanged thereon^'' said the king. The 
sentence was speedily executed. '' So 
they hanged Haman on the gallows 
that he had prepared for Mordecai." 
We see here a most remarkable 
retributive providence. ''In the first 
place, Haman had procured a decree 
for the destruction of the Jews with- 
out any proof of their guilt, or even 
any investigation of their conduct, and 
now he is ordered to execution by the 
arbitrary will of the prince, without 
even the form of a trial. Secondly, 
he IS hanged on the very gibbet which 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 93 

he had erected for Mordecai/' Thus 
are the wicked snared in the work of 
their own hands. Though this is not 
the world of retribution, and though 
*^ the ungodly often prosper in the 
world" until "their eyes stand out 
with fatness, and they have more 
than heart could wish," though it is 
often true that "they are not plagued 
like other men, and there are no bands 
in their death," yet to show the world 
that He has a government going for- 
ward toward a final consummation, 
God sometimes holds men up as bea- 
cons to warn others of their danger. 
In doing this he frequently selects 
such monsters of iniquity as Haman. 
He allows them to frame schemes of 
gigantic wickedness and fiendish 
cruelty. With canvass spread and 
prosperous gales, they sail on the 
sunny sea of prosperity. They rise 
rapidly toward the pinnacle of power, 



94 LIFE OF ESTHER. 

and honours are heaped upon them 
from every quarter. But the giddy 
height to which He is raising them is 
only to make their downfall the more 
conspicuous and instructive. This 
was the case in the instance before 
us. Up to the very day of his exe- 
cution, Haman's career was one of 
uninterrupted prosperity. Wealth 
flowed into his coffers. He distanced 
all his compeers in the pursuit of 
honour, and the whole Persian em- 
pire trembled at his power. But in 
one single day did his calamity over- 
take him. The just judgment of 
God dashed him from his proud emi- 
nence, making him a monument to 

ALL SUCCEEDING GENERATIONS OF HIS 
OWN RIGHTEOUS RETRIBUTIONS. Let 

the innocent commit their cause to 
God. Though justice may seem 
for a while to linger, though it may 
never even come to their succour in 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 95 

this world, yet let them rest assured 
that in the end '' it shall be well 

WITH THE RIGHTEOUS." 



CHAPTER X. 

Haman's palace and estate given to Esther — The 
queen discloses her relationship to Mordecai — Mor- 
decai is made prime minister in place of Haman — 
The queen again petitions for the repeal of Haman's 
edict — The king in a sorry predicament— An edict 
issued allowing the Jews to arm themselves, and 
stand for their lives. 

Several important matters were 
now to be disposed of. Haman was 
dead, but his deeds still lived. There 
were his palace and the vast estate he 
had acquired. These were forfeited 
to the crown, and the king made a 
present of them to the queen. *' The 
wealth of the sinner" was thus '' laid 
up for the just." This estate the 
queen gave into the hands of Mor- 
, decai to manage and control for her 



^ LIFE OF ESTHER. 

use. How singular that the man who 
was to have been hanged in the court 
of Haman's palace should take pos- 
session of that same palace on the 
very same week ! 

The time had now come for the 
queen to disclose her relationship to 
Mordecai. With much pleasure she 
informs the king that Mordecai is her 
near relation ; that it was he who 
took her up a helpless orphan, fur- 
nished her an asylum in his own 
house, adopted her as a daughter, and 
that to him she is indebted for that 
training which had made her the 
choice of Ahasuerus in preference to 
all the damsels assembled from the 
different provinces of the empire. 

Mordecai is instantly summoned 
into the royal presence. There he 
stands — the man who has overthrown 
a most wicked and dangerous minister 
and saved the life of both the king 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 97 

and the queen. And what now 
'' shall be done unto the man whom 
the king delighteth to honour?" The 
monarch takes it upon himself to 
answer this question. He takes oiF 
the ring which he had formerly given 
to Haman, and presents it to Morde- 
cai, thereby investing him with the 
office of chief minister of state. Thus 
while " pride goeth before destruction, 
and a haughty spirit before a fall, 
humility is before honour, and he that 
humbleth himself is exalted" in due 
time. We have already remarked 
that though Haman was dead, his 
deeds still lived. This is often the 
case. The tongue and pen of Vol- 
taire have long since ceased to move, 
but his writings are a legacy of evil, 
which have corrupted and led to 
crime and infamy many a deluded 
young man. The edict for the ex- 
termination of the Jews was yet in 



08 LIFE OF ESTHER, 

force. The enemies of that oppressed 
people were still looking forward to 
the day of slaughter and spoils. The 
queen, therefore, once more entered 
the inner court of the palace. '' And 
Esther spake yet again before the 
king, and fell down at his feet, and 
besought him with tears to put away 
the mischief of Haman, the Agagite, 
and his device that he had devised 
against the Jews." Ahasuerus again 
held out the golden sceptre, when 
*' Esther arose and stood before the 
king, and said. If it please the king, 
and if I have found favour in his 
sight, and the thing seem right before 
the king, and I be pleasing in his eyes, 
let it be written to reverse the letters 
devised by Haman the Agagite, the 
son of Hamadetha, which he wrote to 
destroy the Jews which are in all the 
king's provinces, for how can I en- 
dure to see the evil that shall come 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 99 

unto my people ? or how can I en- 
dure to see the destruction of my 
kindred?" 

This affecting scene moved the 
heart of the king, which indeed must 
have been already filled with painful 
recollections and distressing per- 
plexities. ^'Behold/' said he, ^'I 
have given Esther the house of 
Ham an, and him they have hanged 
upon the gallows, because he laid his 
hand upon the Jews." This was as 
much as to say. You may see by what 
I have already done my anxiety to 
prevent the mischievous effects of this 
bloody edict. ''But why not then 
revoke the edict at once?" Ah ! this 
indeed was the difficulty. Not to say 
any thing of the unenviable plight 
into which the monarch must be 
thrown by repealing, and thus con- 
fessing before the whole empire that 
this decree of unparalleled barbarity 



100 LIFE OF ESTHER. 

was wholly uncalled for, there was a 
still more formidable difficulty in the 
way. In the height of their pride and 
folly, the Persian monarchs and cour- 
tiers had pretended to infallibility in 
their legislation. And as every en- 
actment was declared to be perfect^ 
it was of course to be immiUoMe. 
With superlative arrogance and folly 
they stamped even the crude fancies 
which originated in the fumes of wine 
with the seal of immutability. Thus 
were injustice and oppression made 
perpetual and unalterable. Into what- 
ever rash, hasty, or unjust measures 
the king might be betrayed, he was 
made the slave of his own absurd 
pretensions to infallibility. In this 
wretched predicament was Ahasuerus 
placed on this occasion. The letters 
of Haman had been pubhshed under 
the royal sanction, and the monarch 
with all his absolutism must not re- 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 101 

voke them. To meet one absurdity, 
therefore, resort must be had to 
another. The hves of the Jews must 
still stand exposed to the peril of the 
sword, and the only way is to give 
them authority to arm themselves, and 
repel force by force. This was the 
only resort on the present occasion, 
and the king gave commandment that 
so it should be. The decree for this 
purpose w^s drawn up by Mordecai, 
and presents a striking contrast to that 
of Haman. The first was a decree of 
extermination ; the second was only 
for defence. Haman attempts to con- 
vert the nation into a horde of banditti 
to fall sword in hand upon the de- 
fenceless and unarmed, to take the 
spoil and the prey ; Mordecai allows 
an injured people to arm themselves 
only against those who attack them. 
It is true, to strike terror into their 
enemies, the Jews are allowed "to 



102 LIFE OF ESTHER. 

slay, and cause to perish all the power 
of the people that would assault them, 
both little ones and women, and to 
take the spoil of them for a prey." 
But this they never did, as the sequel 
will show. They took no spoil, 
neither did Mordecai wish they 
should ; but he found it necessary to 
counteract Haman's measures by a 
decree giving the Jews ample powers. 
The edict having been framed, the 
king's secretaries were called, and it 
was translated into the languages of 
the different nations of which the 
empire was composed. Letters con- 
taining it were stamped with the royal 
seal, and sent out to all the provinces 
of the empire. The strongest and 
swiftest beasts were employed, and 
" posts were hastened and pressed on 
by the king's commandment on horses, 
mules, camels, and young drome- 
daries." 



LIFE OF ESTHER, 103 



CHAPTER XL 



Haman during his life time too arrogant to be 
popular — Great rejoicing at Mordecai's elevation- 
Special joy of the Jews on the publication of the 
new edict — A good constitution and a virtuous 
magistracy invaluable blessings — ^Our own country 
' — Our dangers — Duty of good citizens. 

A SHORT period often brings about 
great changes. It is but as yesterday 
when we saw Haman surrounded by 
bowing and cringing courtiers as he 
proudly walked out and in at the 
royal palace. Had we judged only 
from the smiles with which he was 
greeted, and the implicit obedience 
with which he was served, we should 
have considered him a universal 
favourite. At the same time we 
might have seen Mordecai clad in the 
habiliments of sorrow^ with few who 
dare even speak kindly to him, lest 
they should incur the frown of Haman. 
But how oft are appearances decep- 



104 LIFE OF ESTHER. 

jtive! The understandings of men 
often force thera to just conclusions, 
even when interest and cowardice are 
leading them to wear a mask, and act 
a disguised part. 

Haman was too arrogant and un- 
principled to be beloved. His power 
and vindictive temper made him an 
object of dread, but he was too vile a 
man to be sincerely respected. Mor- 
decai, on the contrary, possessed those 
qualities of head and heart, and pur- 
sued that line of conduct^ which com- 
manded respect. We need not be 
surprised, therefore, that now when 
as chief minister of state he came out 
*^from the presence of the king in 
royal apparel, of blue and white, with 
a great crown of gold,^ and with a 
garment of fine linen and purple, 

THE CITY OF ShUSHAN REJOICED AND 

WAS GLAD." "When it goeth well 

* Or turban, ornamented with gold.. 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 105 

with the righteous, the city rejoiceth ; 
and when the wicked perish, there is 
shouting. By the blessing of the up- 
right the city is exalted, but it is over- 
thrown by the mouth of the wicked." 
But if the Persians rejoiced in the 
great change which had been wrought, 
what must have been the feelings of 
the Jews? A decree had just been 
published which occasioned among 
them, in every province, "mourning, 
fasting, weeping, and wailing, and 
many lay in sackcloth and ashes." 
But, behold the change ! Now " the 
Jews had light and gladness, and joy 
and honour, and in every province 
and in every city whithersoever the 
king's commandment and his decree 
came, the Jews had joy and gladness, 
a feast and a good day." Many also 
who saw the star of the Jews to be in 
the ascendant, either to keep on the 
popular side, or, perhaps, having boeu 



106 LIFE OF ESTHER. 

before convinced of the truth of the 
Jewish religion, but afraid to avow 
their sentiments, now came out and 
avowed themselves proselytes to the 
worship of the true God. What an 
invaluable blessing is a good consti- 
tution administered by wise and vir- 
tuous magistrates ! 

We have in the course of this his- 
tory seen a vast empire, composed of 
one hundred and twenty-seven pro- 
vinces, extending from India to 
Ethiopia. This empire possessed un- 
rivalled advantages of soil and climate, 
and a most numerous population. Its 
wealth and magnificence were im- 
mense, and its resources most ample. 
But with all these advantages what 
security for fortune, life, or liberty 
had its inhabitants under a govern- 
ment where the lives of a nation were I 
at the mercy of a worthless court 
favourite ? Look, my dear reader, at 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 107 

the future before you, and then turn 
to your own happy country. Have 
not the line^ fallen to you in 'pleasant 
places^ and has not God given you a 
goodly heritage ? And now remember 
you have, or will have, something to 
do to maintain this goodly heritage. 
Other nations have enjoyed liberty, 
but it is gone. Instead of being now 
ruled by peaceable laws, their every 
right must be guarded by a wall of 
bayonets. And how did they lose 
the precious boon of freedom ? The 
answer to this question is of such un- 
utterable importance that I would I 
could engrave it in indelible lines 
upon my reader's heart. Is there 
anxiety awakened upon this subject ? 
Do you ask with interest, How did they 
lose the precious boon? I answer, 
By their wickedness. A corrupt 
and unprincipled people are only fit 
for a nation of slams. Being unfit for 



108 LIFE OF ESTHER. 

freedom, God gives them up to work 
out their own ruin. A sound and 
healthy morality is the only basis of 
freedom^ and sound national morality 
never did and never can exist with- 
out CORRECT RELIGIOUS PRINCIPLE. 

For mjself I have no fears for our 
liberties from invading armies I 
dread no foreign Alexanders or Na- 
poleons. But I fear vice and irre- 
LiGioN. I fear political demagogues 
and unprincipled magistrates. I fear 
party strifes and political animosities. 
I fear the man who violates his oath 
to the constitution by voting for un- 
principled men for office, merely be- 
cause they are of his party ox for any 
other reason, I fear an editor of a 
newspaper who is either dishonest or 
afraid to rebuke the evils of the times. 
I fear men w^ho are dishonest in their 
dealings, profane in conversation, and 
loose in morals. I fear the man who 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 109 

breaks the sabbath, or disregards the 
moral training of his children. I fear 
the man who disseminates irreligion 
by the tongne, the pen, or the press. 
I fear the minister of religion who is 
more afraid of offending his hearers 
than of displeasing his God. And when 
I see a company of youth or children 
who are disobedient to their parents, 
impudent to their elders, and quarrel- 
some with each other, and who love 
to gather about dram shops and 
gaming places, who either neglect 
the house of God or behave clownishly 
while there, I always fear that they 
will make trouble for themselves and 
the community. And now I am so 
certain that if as a nation we ever fall 
these things will be the cause ; the 
evils I have named will dig the graves 
of our liberties and entomb our glory ; 
that I request my reader, whether old 
or young, to go back and read over 



IIQ LIFE OF ESTHER. 

the grounds of fear whicli I have sug- 
gested : and if he agrees with me in 
regarding those things which I have 
named as great and dangerous evils, 
I request him to resolve that he will 
never either be guilty of any one of 
them himself, or countenance any 
ONE OF THEM in others. 



CHAPTER XII. 
The decisive day at length arrives— The most 
desperate among the enemies of the Jews make 
the attack, but are repulsed with great slaughter— 
Seventy-five thousand fall— Five hundred are slam 
in Shushan, and among them Haman's ten sons— A 
second petition of the queen— Three hundred slam 
on the following day— Peace restored. 

In the last chapter we left two 
royal edicts in force. The one al- 
lowed the enemies of the Jews to 
fall upon them on the thirteenth day 
of the twelfth month, sword in hand, 
and slay men, women, and children, 



LIFE OF ESTHER. Ill 

and take the spoil. The other gave 
the Jews permission to arm them- 
selves, and stand for their lives, and 
to destroy, and take the spoil from 
any that attacked them. As the lat- 
ter decree did not abrogate the for- 
mer, it was legal for any man to kill 
a Jew, and seize upon his estate. 
Thus '' a civil war is proclaimed, 
two parties in the state are armed 
against one another, the innocent 
and the guilty are placed on a level, 
or rather innocence is perilled on the 
accidents of war, and authority, in- 
stead of interposing for the preserva- 
tion of pubhc tranquiUity, stands by 
as a passive spectator of the sangui- 
nary struggle. That these things 
were so was not the fault of Mor- 
decai and Esther," who availed them- 
selves of the only means in their 
power for defending their kindred 
from universal massacre. 



112 LIFE OF ESTHER. 

The decisive day at length arrived. 
^^ It might be thought that the declar- 
ed favour of the king, and the known 
fact that Mordecai was prime minis- 
ter, and chief favourite at court, 
would have effectually deterred any 
from attacking the Jews, and conse- 
quently, that there would be no rea- 
son for the shedding of blood. But 
w^e find that it was otherwise ; nor is 
it dijSicult to account for the fact. 
The Jews had many enemies among 
the nations which composed the Per- 
sian empire, including those which 
had been carried captive from the 
countries bordering on Palestine. 
The decree of Haman had called 
forth the ancient and hereditary 
hatred of such, while it induced 
others to join them by the prospect 
of a rich booty which it held out.i 
During the three months which 
elapsed betw^een this and Morde- 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 113 



cai's decree there was sufficient 
time for the hostile feeling to mani- 
fest itself. Looking upon the Jews 
as a devoted people, their enemies 
would not scruple to declare in every 
way their intention to revenge upon 
them their old quarrels, and when 
once persons have avowed their in- 
tentions, and fairly embarked in any 
cause, however desperate, they are 
apt to persevere in it with unrelent- 
ing obstinacy. The proclamation of 
Mordecai's decree in proportion as it 
gladdened the hearts of the victims 
of their fury, must have thrown a 
damp on the spirits of those who 
thirsted for blood and rapine. But 
it also whetted their revenge by add- 
ing to it disappointment, chagrin, and 
fear. The fall of Haman, and the 
advancement of Mordecai, instead of 
convincing them of the folly c^ their 
enterprise, served but to exasperate 

8 



114 LIFE OF ESTHER. 

their minds, and make them more 
outrageous. They had gone too far 
to retract. They concluded they had 
by their threatenings, their taunts, and 
their injuries, provoked the Jews be- 
yond the hope of forgiveness. They 
were more numerous and powerful 
than the objects of their hatred. The 
contest was to be decided by the 
sword. Though popular favour was 
turned for the present toward the 
Jews, still they could slay, and take 
the spoil, without being subject to 
any punishment. And as for the 
wrath of Mordecai, he held his place 
by the precarious favour of an arbi- 
trary prince, which he might soon 
lose. The sudden advancement of 
a stranger had raised the envy of 
the proud nobles of Persia, and 
means might soon be found to take 
him off. By such considerations 
they would encourage themselves, < 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 115 

and strengthen their confederacy 
during the eight months which in- 
tervened between the pubUcation of 
the two edicts." 

But vain are the counsels of the 
wicked when they oppose the provi- 
li dence of God. How were all these 
expectations blasted when the deci- 
sive day arrived ! The Jews gather- 
ed themselves together in the cities 
of the various provinces of the em- 
pire. This prudent course consoli- 
dated their strength, w^hile the thought 
that they were to fight for their lives, 
their brethren, their aged parents, 
their sons, their daughters, their 
wives, and their houses, together 
with the consciousness that they 
were in the right, and that God was 
for them, gave them a spirit and 
couracre which their assailants could 
not resist. Besides, their enemies 
were struck with terror. They fought 



116 LIFE OF ESTHER. 

in a bad cause. Their consciences, 
if they had any, must have reproach- 
ed them. God was evidently against 
them. They were measuring swords 
with men who fought in a just cause ; 
with men who w^ere fighting as fa- 
thers and husbands, as sons and bro- 
thers ; and they found themselves en- 
gaged in an unequal contest. It is 
also probable, that only the most 
wicked and desperate actually ven- 
tured upon an assault. Many might 
have boasted largely beforehand who 
were missing when the time of action 
arrived. In addition to this, the 
rulers of the different provinces un- 
derstanding very well the will of the 
king, and knowing the queen was a 
Jewess, and Mordecai prime minister, 
countenanced the Jews. Victory, 
therefore, declared on their side. 
Yet was it not bought without a se- 
vere struggle. Their enemies made 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 117 

" a desperate resistance, as men who 
in drawing the sword had thrown 
away the scabbard, and staked their 
all in the contest. This appears from 
the number killed, amounting, in all 
the provinces, to seventy-five thou- 
sand." In this terrible slaughter the 
Jews were actuated by very differ- 
ent motives from those which govern- 
ed the assailants. The latter, fired 
with rancour, made an unprovoked 
assault upon an innocent people. 
The former stood to defend their 
wives and little ones from ruffian 
violence and cruel death. The as- 
sailants came to shed innocent blood 
for gold and plunder. The defend- 
ants utterly refused to lay their hands 
on the spoil, although a law of the 
empire confiscated to them the goods 
and estates of any who should assault 
them. 

At the close of this eventful day, 



118 LIFE OF ESTHER. 

the number of the slain in Shushan 
was reported to the king*. He imme- 
diately reported the result to Esther: 
"The Jews," said he, "have slain 
and destroyed five hundred men in 
Shushan, and the ten sons of Ha- 
man. What have they done in the 
rest of the king's provinces ? Now 
what is thy petition ? and it shall be 
granted thee : and what is thy re- 
quest farther ? and it shall be done." 
She requested first, that the bodies 
of Haman's ten sons should be hang- 
ed upon a gallows. " It is not un- 
likely," says Dr. Dodd, "that many 
[of his particular favourites] might 
be enraged at Haman's death. His 
sons in particular might set them- 
selves at the head of those who were 
bold enough to attempt the destruc- 
tion of the Jews at Shushan, being 
resolved to revenge their father's 
death. This seems to suggest one 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 119 

reason why Esther was solicitous to 
have their bodies hung on the gal- 
lows, because they had shown more 
malice and indignation against the 
Jews than any others, and on the 
day when the cruel edict went into 
effect had made the most desperate 
attack upon them. The reasons of 
state in this severity might be to ex- 
pose the family to greater infamy, 
and thereby deter other counsellors 
at any future time from abusing the 
king with false representations." The 
second part of Esther's request was, 
that the Jews might be permitted to 
continue the battle on the following 
day. ^' There is no part of Esther's 
conduct which warrants us to con- 
clude that she was of a sanguinary 
disposition, or took pleasure in slaugh- 
ter." But it is probable that she 
had been informed by Mordecai, that 
some of the most implacable enemies 



120 LIFE OF ESTHER. 

of the Jews had fled from the battle 
after they saw it was going against 
them, and were still alive. To en- 
tirely break down the dangerous con- 
spiracy against the Jews, and give 
peace to the empire, she wished an 
example made of these men in the 
capital, and to have the news go out 
into the provinces. Accordingly, the 
king granted her request, and three 
hundred more fell on the next day. 
Tranquillity was now restored to the 
kingdom. The Jews found them- 
selves honoured and respected, and 
the whole empire reaped great ad- 
vantages by a change of men and 
measures. 






LIFE OF ESTHER. 121 



CHAPTER XIII. 

Results of the preceding events — Effects on the 
empire — The world interested in this deliverance 
of the Jews — Improved state of piety among the 
Jews — Proselytes to the true religion — Security of 
those who trust in God. 

In pursuing our narrative we have 
seen a dark and threatening cloud 
gathering over " God's chosen peo- 
ple." In thick and heavy volumes 
it arose and overspread the political 
sky. Fitfully it emitted its angry 
gleams, which seemed to portend 
that, surcharged with wrath, it was 
about to burst in one general and 
desolating tornado. The tempest did 
indeed rage ; but there was One who 
guided the whirlwind in its course and 
brought his people safely through. 
Atid now what do we behold ? What 
but a serene and purified atmosphere, 
a cloudless sky, and nature green, 



122 LIFE OF ESTHER. 

and refreshed, and beautified. It is 
thus that providence overrules events, 
and makes them subservient to its 
ovi^n gracious designs. But let us 
look a little more definitely at this 
remarkable page in the world's his- 
tory. The leading fact deserving of 
consideration is this : That though 
a chosen instrument of Satan had 
formed a plot, v^hich for the craft 
with which it was laid, the magnitude 
of the mischief it w^as designed to 
accomplish, and the success which 
promised to attend it, has scarcely 
found a parallel ; still, God so over- 
ruled EVENTS, THAT THE ISSUE LEFT 
EVERY THING IN AN IMPROVED STATE. 

First, The government of the empire 
became greatly improved. There 
was a change both of men and mea- 
sures. The administration could 
scarcely have been in worse hands 
than Haman's, or in better than Mor- 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 123 

decai's. And when we consider the 
extent of the empire, the immense 
number of its subjects, and how much 
depends on a wise and prudent ad- 
ministration, we shall see that this 
was a matter of no little consequence. 
Secondly, This great deliverance 
which God wrought for his people, 
was far more extensive in its results 
than would at first view appear. It 
was in reality a mercy to the world. 
Let it be recollected that the decree 
of Haman embraced the Jews in Pa- 
lestine as well as elsewhere. Let it 
also be remembered, that with the 
Jewish nation was deposited in trust 
for mankind the true rehgion. The 
law and the prophets, the history of 
the world, and the promises and pre- 
dictions of the Messiah, were with 
them. Had Haman's gigantic project 
prevailed, and all Jews been destroy- 
ed, how fearful would have been the 



124 LIFE OF ESTHER. 

result ! The true religion would have 
been nearly, if not totally exterminated. 
The prophecies which had announced 
that the Jews should be preserved 
as a nation until the coming of the 
Messiah, would have been falsified. 
The economy which was to usher in 
the gospel would have been annihi- 
lated, and idolatry and false religion 
have enjoyed a new triumph. The 
interposition of Providence was there- 
fore not barely in behalf of the Jews, 
but in behalf of true religion, or, in 
other words, in behalf of the world. 
Thirdly, The true rehgion was not 
only saved from extermination, but, 
we have reason to conclude, was ad- 
vanced in credit, extent, and purity. 
The heathen could not help seeing 
the hand of God in these striking 
events, and we are expressly told, 
many of them embraced the Jewish 
religion. And could the people of 



LIFE OF ESTHER. 125 

God fail to become more devoted and 
more grateful. Were not the faith and 
the zeal of many greatly increased by 
their great trials and signal deliver- 
ance? They instituted an annual 
festival in commemoration of this 
event, called the feast of Purim. 
One of the special acts of this festi- 
val was to send portions to one an- 
other, and GIFTS TO the poor. This 
last act, at least, indicated that they 
remembered their obligations to God, 
and endeavoured to show their gra- 
titude to him by remembering his 
suffering children. 

Again, we are taught by this in- 
structive providence the security of 
those who put their trust in the Lord. 
Pharaoh and his hosts may advance 
against Israel, the plain behind them 
may glitter with the hostile array, 
the shouts of the pursuers may be 
appalling to the stoutest hearts ; but 



126 LIFE OF ESTHER. 

God has need of no other instrument 
than the waters of the Red Sea to. 
overwhelm that host in one general 
ruin. The fires of Nebuchadnezzar's 
furnace may glow with intense heat, 
but they shall not singe a hair from 
the heads of Shadrach, Meshach, and 
Abednego. So Haman may have 
the whole power of Persia at his 
command, but the whole of that pow- 
er shall not be able to destroy a sin- 
gle Jew while God protects. Leav- 
ing Mordecai and Esther, therefore, 
in the possession of all earthly bless- 
ings, and the Jews in peace and qui- 
etude, we may adore and trust in 
that Being who suffereth not "a 
sparrow to fall to the ground without 
his notice," and who has declared, 
"They that trust in the Lord 
shall never be confounded." 

THE END. 



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